The People

Rob JensenA fourth-generation Northern Californian, Rob first developed a passion for winemaking living in Italy during his college days where he was nicknamed “Testarossa” (Italian for “red head”). That passion, fueled by his formative travels to Europe's great wine growing areas, transformed into a vision. His path toward founding a winery that’s grown to national prominence among collectors and reviewers was circuitous, as he embarked on a 20-year high-tech career in Silicon Valley. He continued to feed his passion, and studied at the renowned School of Viticulture and Oenology at UC Davis. He and his wife Diana started Testarossa in their garage in 1993 with just twenty-five cases of wine. Eight years later, he made the leap and left high-tech to follow his dream. It’s been quite a second act.Read the full storyDiana JensenDiana, who was also born in Northern California but raised in San Diego, met Rob while earning her Electrical Engineering degree at Santa Clara University. After graduating, she worked in high-tech marketing at Silicon Valley's National Semiconductor and Cypress Semiconductor. Already juggling her career and raising a family, she and Rob decided to start Testarossa Winery in 1993. What started as a weekend project in their garage quickly gained momentum. As new grape sources were secured and the wines gained reputation, it became clear that this “hobby” was destined to be more—and more would be needed to develop the winery into a business. In 1994, Diana left the high-tech world and joined Rob to run Testarossa full time. An inspiration to anyone in pursuit of their dream.Bill BrosseauDirector of Winemaking, Bill Brosseau has been with Testarossa since the year 2000. Bill brings extensive viticultural experience in the field and from the classroom. He studied at UC Davis where he received his Bachelor of Science in Viticulture and Enology. His unique approach to winemaking comes from working both sides of the equation—in the vineyard and in the cellar. Because Bill is also a grower, he brings invaluable hands-on experience and a unique perspective that allows him to supply the winery with only the best Pinot Noir and Chardonnay fruit to translate into the most sought-after wines. Key to this is Bill’s ability to establish close, long-term relationships with the top vineyards, ensuring exceptional quality vintage to vintage.

Appellation

Our Director of Winemaking, Bill Brosseau prides himself on establishing long-term relationships with some of the state’s best-known vineyard estates. Working closely with them, he oversees the year-round lifecycle of the vineyards and managing the individual blocks set aside for the winery. His combined experience with grape growing and winemaking gives Testarossa complete quality control – from “soil to the bottle.”